Evelyn stared at the box of pebbles as it was passed to the students in front of her and eventually into her own hand. For the span of a heartbeat, she considered passing it on without taking one, but didn't want to start out by being disruptive, and tentatively accepted a stone. She laughed at the relation to her own name and then stopped when the feeling made her want to cry instead.

The paper on the desk in front of her depicted a table she'd never seen before and she wasn't exactly sure how to fill it in. Again, a heartbeat went by as she considered her options. The thought of asking for help wasn't a terrible one, unless Professor Skies stayed to see how she worked, in which case the whole class would see what a lousy witch she was.

Breathing in softly, she reached for her quill and decided to make the best of a bad situation. She liked to consider herself detail-oriented when faced with a problem like this, and perhaps she could run out time in the classroom by filling in the table with as much information as possible.

They are both hard, she wrote, hoping that wasn't stupid. The student on her right nudged her gently and she turned to see who it was.

Selina had returned to full time teaching originally as a temporary measure. The school had needed staff, and with her daughters grown and gone from home, it made sense to take on the demands of a... more

Katya sat quietly, her hands in her lap, back straight, just as Mama had always taught her, but her dark blue-grey eyes were huge in her small face as she tried to study the woman at the front of the ... more

Evelyn didn't quite smile, she was too nervous for that, but somehow the girl's clumsy bump put her at ease a little bit and she felt herself relax. She couldn't help noticing that the girl hadn't... more

Super confused. This, Katya assumed, was an idiom, because otherwise it was an oxymoron - ‘super,’ she had learned, was short for superlative, and Anton Petrovich said Americans used it to mean... more

Evelyn frowned, just a little bit. She had hoped to find a classmate who felt as overwhelmed as she did, as scared as she did, and as confused as she did, so she wouldn't have to figure all this out... more

Masha took the sheet, still clenching the pebble in her other hand. Staring at the sheet in front of her she could feel the smooth surface of the pebble. It was round and somehow shooting. Her hand... more

Jane couldn’t honestly say she was super excited for Transfiguration. Her mother had repeatedly told her how difficult it was, and that it might take her a long time to start succeeding with the... more

Masha blinked. Was that girl talking to her? Raising her head to look at the girl properly she felt sort of thorn in two. She wanted to squeal with joy and at the same time to run away and hide. She... more

Jane was a bit surprised by the girl’s reaction, as she seemed to be frowning at her. Or at something, anyway. Maybe she wasn’t frowning at her, but at her pebble. Jane definitely felt like frowning... more

Masha breathed out slowly, she wasn’t aware that she held her breath. 'Good, so Jane at least don’t think I’m insane.' She smiled at the Jane more openly and, thankfully, without frowning this time.... more

“I totally want to know!” Jane said enthusiastically. She had been a little bit confused at first when Masha had started to talk about living in tents and shacks - she wondered whether they were... more

Masha looked at Jane blinking, everything Jane said during her mad dash of words coming back to her slowly. The stupid grin still lingering, even if it wasn’t quite the button she managed to make.... more

Dorian took a seat in Transfiguration, listening carefully to Professor Skies. Even though he was a second year, and it was already somewhat familiar, he was sure he occasionally missed details due... more